Name, Title, and License # of the agent who booked the show: If you’re with a large talent agency, you may see an agent’s name you don’t recognize. Don’t panic; it’s common and usually just means your show is outside the geographical territory of your responsible agent, so it’s being handled by one of his or her colleagues at your talent agency. The booking agent is the point person at the agency for the show and is in close communication with your responsible agent. If you have questions, your manager should call your responsible agent, who will know what’s up.
Address of Artist’s talent agency.
Date of Contract and statement of who’s who: This is the date the contract was issued—not the show date. The date should be phrased in this form: “on this 29th day of August, 2006.” Some contracts read “Musician,” some read “Artist.” The promoter (talent buyer) is always referred to as “Purchaser.”
NAME AND ADDRESS OF PLACE OF ENGAGEMENT: The address of the venue where the show will actually take place… not the business address of the Purchaser.
NAME OF BAND OR GROUP: The stage name of your act, as it should appear in advertisements about the performance, i.e. THE ROLLING STONES or JOE SCHMOE AND THE UNKNOWNS.
NUMBER OF MUSICIANS: The number of people in your own band. (It does not include any local choirs, string sections, etc. the purchaser may be hiring locally to appear with you.)
DATE(S) AND TIME OF ENGAGEMENT: The show date and time. Note that the length of your part of the show goes here too.
The show date should be phrased in this form: 08/29/06.
If the Purchaser is doing multiple dates with you at the same venue and the showtime and contract terms are identical for every show, you can phrase it like this: 08/29/06 AND 08/30/06. For three dates it should be phrased like this: 08/29/06 AND 08/30/06 AND 08/31/06. Use the word AND instead of dashes, which can lead to confusion and are difficult to read at a glance. (An example of what not to do would be: 08/29/06-08/31/06)
When stating the time, always put “approx” (for approximately). This covers you if someone’s watch is set differently than yours or if the show starts a little late due to technical problems or soundcheck running late.
Approx. (for approximately) should also be used in the set length to cover you if someone’s watch is a bit off. Otherwise, some promoter, somewhere, may try to count the time to the last second and try to get a discount. It really does happen.
For a major headlining artist who does an encore on a regular basis, the encore is listed separately to let staffers know you’re likely to do one. An example of the wording would be: “approx. 90 minutes plus encore.” This wording helps cover you if it’s a dead crowd or there’s a technical problem and you opt not to do it.
TYPE OF ENGAGEMENT: If you’re a band or singer, it will nearly always say “Stage show” because it includes every aspect of what happens on your stage.
Note that in addition to the type of engagement, it also states “One performance.” Very important.
COMPENSATION AGREED UPON: Note that the exact deal is spelled out, along with deposit amounts and due dates, form of payment, and to whom.
If you are an AFM member performing outside of the U.S., know which currency is worth more: U.S. currency or the currency of the country you'll be performing in...and get paid in it! Be sure the contract states which currency you'll be paid in (“U.S. Currency” in this particular contract). There have been cases of unscrupulous promoters who tried to pay the artist in a currency with a lower monetary value. (If we hadn’t witnessed it, we wouldn’t believe it either. Save yourself the headache and be specific.)
Where it says “payable to as agents”, the name of your talent agency goes in the blank. If you don’t have an agent and the check goes directly to the band’s corporation, state the name as it is on the corporation’s bank account and delete “as agents.”
ADDITIONAL CLAUSES:
BILLING: Your agent should always discuss your position in the lineup, and be sure your performance position is written into the contract. This helps avoid the surprise of arriving at a show to suddenly find yourself opening a show with five other artists when you thought you were headlining and closing the show.
In this example, “100% Top Headline Billing and Will Close Show” means this artist’s name appears first in all advertising pertaining to the show, and that as the Headliner, the artist will perform last, closing out the evening’s entertainment.
Other billing possibilities include: Opening Act (artist opens the show and rarely is mentioned in advertising, but your agent should always try for a mention if the show is booked far enough to make the ad deadlines), 1/3 billing (artist is on the bill with two other artists, is mentioned third in advertising, and performs first) or Co-headline (artist shares headline billing with another artist, and the two take turns closing the show on alternate nights. This situation is found more commonly in series of dates or whole tours).
SUPPORT: If you’re the headliner and there’s a local opening act, the name of the act and/or how much the Purchaser is budgeting for their fee, as well as their set length goes here. Because a local opening act is often hired last minute, this space often says “To Be Advised.”
CAPACITY: Venue capacity of saleable tickets for this show. This is the number from which the Gross Potential is calculated, so it’s important that the capacity is accurate.
SOUND AND LIGHTS: If the Purchaser is to provide and pay for Sound and Lights, it’s stated here. If this is the case, be sure the words “to Artist’s specifications” are included in this clause. (Otherwise, God knows what you may end up with.) Also, be prepared to provide a stage plot and list of required sound and lighting equipment.
TICKETS: The breakdown of the number of saleable tickets at each ticket price.
GROSS POTENTIAL: Number of saleable tickets at each price x the ticket price = Gross Potential. (Sometimes the anticipated Net is here, too, with a slash in between the two Figures.)
NAMES OF ALL MUSICIANS/LOCAL UNION NO./ SOCIAL SECURITY NO./CORPORATE TAX ID #: Used for tax and social security purposes, as well as union dues and benefits, so check to see the information is correct. The real name and Social Security # of each member of your band, the chapter numbers of their local AFM, and the Corporate Tax ID # of your band’s corporation are here, so exercise care when handling contracts and disposing of old ones.
Names of all musicians should be the full legal name of each band member, as it appears on the band member’s social security card. Or it can be the person’s full legal name with an aka to indicate their stage name, as in this example: Joseph A. Schmoe, aka “Joey S.”
Signature of Purchaser:This is where the promoter (talent buyer) signs. Important!!! The Purchaser should always sign first (i.e.,“execute the contract”)!!!He or she may make changes—especially to the rider-- and you don’t want to sign your OK before you see them.) Then the Musician signs (aka “countersigns”) the contract, thus making the contract “fully executed.” Purchaser’s name, name of his company and company address where contracts should be sent is typed below the signature line. Signature of Signatory Musician/ Home Local Union No.: The band member (usually the leader) responsible for signing legal documents on behalf of the band signs here. Signatory name, business address where contracts should be sent, (usually the management company), and chapter number of his /her local AFM are typed below the signature line.
In some cases where the artist is on tour or otherwise not available, the artist’s manager signs. In that case, his/her name, business address, and the clause “as agent for (Band name)” are typed below the signature line.
Artist (or manager) should sign in blue ink to make it easier to tell original contracts from copies and should require “original contracts only” as part of their regular artist requirements. Today’s scanner and editing quality makes it far too easy to edit contracts.
Talent agency name goes in the blank space here.
Back of Page 1: Additional Terms and Conditions (ignore the black paragraph numbers)__
Prevents your show from being recorded, broadcast, etc. without yours and the Union’s permission, because Union Scale rates are different for that.
In laymen’s terms, this essentially means that, with the exception of the clause in Figure 26, the AFM isn’t in on the deal, so it’s between the Musician and Purchaser.
Grants a union representative access to the venue in the event of a problem.
States that if Purchaser breaches the contract or cancels the show, Musician has the right to keep the deposit and to pursue other remedies allowed by law. (Specific dollar amounts for cancellation penalties are sometimes spelled out in the artist’s rider as well.)
Gives artist creative control of his own show and states artist isn’t liable if he has to cancel the show for the reasons listed in this clause.
States that the person who signs as the Purchaser has the authority to sign as such, and is legally obligated to uphold the Purchaser’s end of the deal.
In a nutshell, this prevents the Purchaser from discounting or giving away tickets without the artist’s written permission and gives the artist/artist’s reps the right be present in the box office at all times and at Settlement, as well as the right to double-check all the math before and after the show. The specific terms and wording of this clause are very important.
Essentially states that if, before show day, the Purchaser breaches a contract for another artist’s show (or hasn’t paid someone involved with another artist’s show), or has bad credit or other financial problems, Musician has the right to cancel without penalty. It also says that if Purchaser breaches this contract, it’s the musician’s choice whether to perform or cancel the show, and that Musician can sue either way.
Gives the artist the right to sell his merchandise and recordings and keep all the cash from it. Merchandise splits are very common, though, particularly at clubs.
States that this is the only valid version of the contract. Important: This means if there were any verbal agreements or additions, they need to be written in the contract or be added via an addendum signed by both parties. Otherwise, according to this clause, they don’t exist.
The name of your talent goes here. This clause means the agent isn’t responsible for anything the artist does.
Here the Purchaser chooses who will arbitrate in the event of a contract dispute or breach of contract that goes into arbitration: the American Arbitration Association (option A), or the AFM Local Union (option B). If no box is checked, it’s option “B”, the Local Union.
A very important clause where accuracy is key, because it says who completes your federal and state tax forms pertaining to that show. This clause is where a lot of artists run into tax problems; if not done correctly, suddenly the artist finds they owe a lot of money in taxes because taxes were never withheld for each show. (It can also affect your Social Security withholding.)
Find out if your talent agency completes the withholding tax forms for the show. Your responsible agent will refer you to the agency’s accounting department. (If you have a good agency, they do the forms and withhold the taxes for you.)
If so, the name of your talent agency goes here.
If you don’t have an agent and the check goes directly to the band’s corporation, check with your accountant or manager: What you will most likely do is request that each show’s Purchaser fill out the forms.
To request that the Purchaser fill out the tax forms:
Draw a line through the words “If payments hereunder are to be made in the name of a payee other than ,” as in the example below and have the person who signs the contract on behalf of the band initial next to the deleted clause.
If payments hereunder are to be made in the name of a payee other than ,
As in the example below, highlight “Purchaser will prepare all applicable federal and state tax information returns including Federal Form 1099-MISC, Federal Form W-2, or Federal Form 1042S.” Have the band’s signatory initial there, too:
Purchaser will prepare all applicable federal and state tax information returns including Federal Form 1099-MISC, Federal Form W-2, or Federal Form 1042S.
Regardless of who fills out the forms, you’re the one financially responsible to the IRS in the event of a problem. So regardless of who completes the forms, make sure you and/or your accountant get copies of the completed tax forms for each gig, and follow up to make sure the taxes were actually withheld.
AFM Logo and Address of the Main AFM office.
Name and/or Logo of Artist’s talent agency.
Name, Title, and License # of the agent who booked the show: If you’re with a large talent agency, you may see an agent’s name you don’t recognize. Don’t panic; it’s common and usually just means your show is outside the geographical territory of your responsible agent, so it’s being handled by one of his or her colleagues at your talent agency. The booking agent is the point person at the agency for the show and is in close communication with your responsible agent. If you have questions, your manager should call your responsible agent, who will know what’s up.
Address of Artist’s talent agency.
Date of Contract and statement of who’s who: This is the date the contract was issued—not the show date. The date should be phrased in this form: “on this 29th day of August, 2006.” Some contracts read “Musician,” some read “Artist.” The promoter (talent buyer) is always referred to as “Purchaser.”
NAME AND ADDRESS OF PLACE OF ENGAGEMENT: The address of the venue where the show will actually take place… not the business address of the Purchaser.
NAME OF BAND OR GROUP: The stage name of your act, as it should appear in advertisements about the performance, i.e. THE ROLLING STONES or JOE SCHMOE AND THE UNKNOWNS.
NUMBER OF MUSICIANS: The number of people in your own band. (It does not include any local choirs, string sections, etc. the purchaser may be hiring locally to appear with you.)
DATE(S) AND TIME OF ENGAGEMENT: The show date and time. Note that the length of your part of the show goes here too.
- The show date should be phrased in this form: 08/29/06.
- If the Purchaser is doing multiple dates with you at the same venue and the showtime and contract terms are identical for every show, you can phrase it like this: 08/29/06 AND 08/30/06. For three dates it should be phrased like this: 08/29/06 AND 08/30/06 AND 08/31/06. Use the word AND instead of dashes, which can lead to confusion and are difficult to read at a glance. (An example of what not to do would be: 08/29/06-08/31/06)
- When stating the time, always put “approx” (for approximately). This covers you if someone’s watch is set differently than yours or if the show starts a little late due to technical problems or soundcheck running late.
- Approx. (for approximately) should also be used in the set length to cover you if someone’s watch is a bit off. Otherwise, some promoter, somewhere, may try to count the time to the last second and try to get a discount. It really does happen.
- For a major headlining artist who does an encore on a regular basis, the encore is listed separately to let staffers know you’re likely to do one. An example of the wording would be: “approx. 90 minutes plus encore.” This wording helps cover you if it’s a dead crowd or there’s a technical problem and you opt not to do it.
TYPE OF ENGAGEMENT: If you’re a band or singer, it will nearly always say “Stage show” because it includes every aspect of what happens on your stage.- Note that in addition to the type of engagement, it also states “One performance.” Very important.
COMPENSATION AGREED UPON: Note that the exact deal is spelled out, along with deposit amounts and due dates, form of payment, and to whom.- If you are an AFM member performing outside of the U.S., know which currency is worth more: U.S. currency or the currency of the country you'll be performing in...and get paid in it! Be sure the contract states which currency you'll be paid in (“U.S. Currency” in this particular contract). There have been cases of unscrupulous promoters who tried to pay the artist in a currency with a lower monetary value. (If we hadn’t witnessed it, we wouldn’t believe it either. Save yourself the headache and be specific.)
- Where it says “payable to as agents”, the name of your talent agency goes in the blank. If you don’t have an agent and the check goes directly to the band’s corporation, state the name as it is on the corporation’s bank account and delete “as agents.”
ADDITIONAL CLAUSES:BILLING: Your agent should always discuss your position in the lineup, and be sure your performance position is written into the contract. This helps avoid the surprise of arriving at a show to suddenly find yourself opening a show with five other artists when you thought you were headlining and closing the show.
In this example, “100% Top Headline Billing and Will Close Show” means this artist’s name appears first in all advertising pertaining to the show, and that as the Headliner, the artist will perform last, closing out the evening’s entertainment.
Other billing possibilities include: Opening Act (artist opens the show and rarely is mentioned in advertising, but your agent should always try for a mention if the show is booked far enough to make the ad deadlines), 1/3 billing (artist is on the bill with two other artists, is mentioned third in advertising, and performs first) or Co-headline (artist shares headline billing with another artist, and the two take turns closing the show on alternate nights. This situation is found more commonly in series of dates or whole tours).
SUPPORT: If you’re the headliner and there’s a local opening act, the name of the act and/or how much the Purchaser is budgeting for their fee, as well as their set length goes here. Because a local opening act is often hired last minute, this space often says “To Be Advised.”
CAPACITY: Venue capacity of saleable tickets for this show. This is the number from which the Gross Potential is calculated, so it’s important that the capacity is accurate.
SOUND AND LIGHTS: If the Purchaser is to provide and pay for Sound and Lights, it’s stated here. If this is the case, be sure the words “to Artist’s specifications” are included in this clause. (Otherwise, God knows what you may end up with.) Also, be prepared to provide a stage plot and list of required sound and lighting equipment.
TICKETS: The breakdown of the number of saleable tickets at each ticket price.
GROSS POTENTIAL: Number of saleable tickets at each price x the ticket price = Gross Potential. (Sometimes the anticipated Net is here, too, with a slash in between the two Figures.)
NAMES OF ALL MUSICIANS/LOCAL UNION NO./ SOCIAL SECURITY NO./CORPORATE TAX ID #: Used for tax and social security purposes, as well as union dues and benefits, so check to see the information is correct. The real name and Social Security # of each member of your band, the chapter numbers of their local AFM, and the Corporate Tax ID # of your band’s corporation are here, so exercise care when handling contracts and disposing of old ones.
- Names of all musicians should be the full legal name of each band member, as it appears on the band member’s social security card. Or it can be the person’s full legal name with an aka to indicate their stage name, as in this example: Joseph A. Schmoe, aka “Joey S.”
Signature of Purchaser: This is where the promoter (talent buyer) signs. Important!!! The Purchaser should always sign first (i.e.,“execute the contract”)!!! He or she may make changes—especially to the rider-- and you don’t want to sign your OK before you see them.) Then the Musician signs (aka “countersigns”) the contract, thus making the contract “fully executed.”Purchaser’s name, name of his company and company address where contracts should be sent is typed below the signature line.
Signature of Signatory Musician/ Home Local Union No.: The band member (usually the leader) responsible for signing legal documents on behalf of the band signs here.
Signatory name, business address where contracts should be sent, (usually the management company), and chapter number of his /her local AFM are typed below the signature line.
- In some cases where the artist is on tour or otherwise not available, the artist’s manager signs. In that case, his/her name, business address, and the clause “as agent for (Band name)” are typed below the signature line.
- Artist (or manager) should sign in blue ink to make it easier to tell original contracts from copies and should require “original contracts only” as part of their regular artist requirements. Today’s scanner and editing quality makes it far too easy to edit contracts.
Talent agency name goes in the blank space here.Back of Page 1: Additional Terms and Conditions (ignore the black paragraph numbers)__
Prevents your show from being recorded, broadcast, etc. without yours and the Union’s permission, because Union Scale rates are different for that.
In laymen’s terms, this essentially means that, with the exception of the clause in Figure 26, the AFM isn’t in on the deal, so it’s between the Musician and Purchaser.
Grants a union representative access to the venue in the event of a problem.
States that if Purchaser breaches the contract or cancels the show, Musician has the right to keep the deposit and to pursue other remedies allowed by law. (Specific dollar amounts for cancellation penalties are sometimes spelled out in the artist’s rider as well.)
Gives artist creative control of his own show and states artist isn’t liable if he has to cancel the show for the reasons listed in this clause.
States that the person who signs as the Purchaser has the authority to sign as such, and is legally obligated to uphold the Purchaser’s end of the deal.
In a nutshell, this prevents the Purchaser from discounting or giving away tickets without the artist’s written permission and gives the artist/artist’s reps the right be present in the box office at all times and at Settlement, as well as the right to double-check all the math before and after the show. The specific terms and wording of this clause are very important.
Essentially states that if, before show day, the Purchaser breaches a contract for another artist’s show (or hasn’t paid someone involved with another artist’s show), or has bad credit or other financial problems, Musician has the right to cancel without penalty. It also says that if Purchaser breaches this contract, it’s the musician’s choice whether to perform or cancel the show, and that Musician can sue either way.
Gives the artist the right to sell his merchandise and recordings and keep all the cash from it. Merchandise splits are very common, though, particularly at clubs.
States that this is the only valid version of the contract. Important: This means if there were any verbal agreements or additions, they need to be written in the contract or be added via an addendum signed by both parties. Otherwise, according to this clause, they don’t exist.
The name of your talent goes here. This clause means the agent isn’t responsible for anything the artist does.
Here the Purchaser chooses who will arbitrate in the event of a contract dispute or breach of contract that goes into arbitration: the American Arbitration Association (option A), or the AFM Local Union (option B). If no box is checked, it’s option “B”, the Local Union.
A very important clause where accuracy is key, because it says who completes your federal and state tax forms pertaining to that show. This clause is where a lot of artists run into tax problems; if not done correctly, suddenly the artist finds they owe a lot of money in taxes because taxes were never withheld for each show. (It can also affect your Social Security withholding.)
- Find out if your talent agency completes the withholding tax forms for the show. Your responsible agent will refer you to the agency’s accounting department. (If you have a good agency, they do the forms and withhold the taxes for you.)
- If so, the name of your talent agency goes here.
- If you don’t have an agent and the check goes directly to the band’s corporation, check with your accountant or manager: What you will most likely do is request that each show’s Purchaser fill out the forms.
To request that the Purchaser fill out the tax forms:If payments hereunder are to be made in the name of a payee other than ,
Purchaser will prepare all applicable federal and state tax information returns including Federal Form 1099-MISC, Federal Form W-2, or Federal Form 1042S.